General Concepts and Historical Antecedents of Science and Technology

Vocabulary flashcards covering the historical development, key figures, and defining periods of science and technology from the Stone Age to the Information Age.

Science (Body of Knowledge)

A systematized body of knowledge based on facts gathered through observations, experiences, and experiments to formulate a verifiable conclusion or law.

Technology (Application)

The application of scientific knowledge to the practical aims of human life or to the change and manipulation of the human environment.

Science vs. Technology

Science explores for the purpose of knowing, while technology explores for the purpose of making something useful from that knowledge.

Three-Age System

A system of classifying ancient ages into groups based on tool developmental stages, considered archaeology's first paradigm.

Christian J u r g e n s e n Thomsen

The individual who first fully introduced the Three-Age System in 1837.

Stone Age

The longest period in the history of science and technology, spanning over $3.4$ million years, where stone was used to make tools with an edge or point.

Paleolithic Period

The "Old Stone" period and longest phase of human history where early humans were hunter-gatherers with no permanent dwellings.

Lower Paleolithic Period

Associated with $Homo\,habilis$ and $Homo\,erectus$, characterized by simple stone tools like Acheulean handaxes and the controlled use of fire.

Middle Paleolithic Period

The period (ca $200,000$ to $45,000$ years ago) when $Homo\,sapiens\,neanderthalensis$ appeared and used Mousterian flake tools.

Upper Paleolithic Period

The period ($40,000$-$10,000$ years BP) marked by the disappearance of Neanderthals and the rise of modern humans with advanced tools and cave art.

Mesolithic Period

The "Middle Stone" period characterized by the use of microliths (small chipped stone tools) and the transition to semi-settled life.

Neolithic Period

The "New Stone" period linked with the Agricultural Revolution, including cereal cultivation and animal domestication.

Bronze Age

A period (3000 BC – 1200 BC) marked by the introduction of metals produced through smelting ores like copper and tin.

Iron Age

The last period of the Ancient Age (1500 BC – 450 AD) when tools and weapons were made of iron and steel.

Smelting

The process of extracting metal from ores, which are rocks containing traces of different metals.

Steel

An alloy of iron and carbon that replaced bronze tools due to its abundance and strength.

Agricultural Revolution

A shift from foraging to agriculture where people learned to plant crops and raise animals as resources became scarce.

Ionian School of Philosophy

A Pre-Socratic group of Greek philosophers in the 5th-6th century BC who studied the origins of the universe.

Socrates

A Greek philosopher known for the elenchus method of enquiry and for creating the basic foundation of making a hypothesis.

Elenchus

Socrates' method of enquiry used to highlight incorrect thinking by citizens and serve as a building block for scientific research.

Plato

A philosopher who emphasized proof in research and believed all substances are made of air, water, earth, and fire.

Aristotle

The philosopher who initiated the deductive method of scientific inquiry and established natural principles through careful observation.

Black Death

A devastating global epidemic of bubonic plague that struck Europe and Asia in the mid-1300s, arriving in Europe via ships in October 1347.

Ayurveda

The Indian people's system of medicine documenting diseases, drugs, and a combination of plant and animal medicine.

Ibn Al-Haytham

Known as the "father of optics," he discovered the mechanism of light.

Al-Zahrawi

An Arab doctor who invented surgical tools including forceps, pincers, and lancets, and used catgut for stitching.

Scientific Revolution (1440-1690 AD)

The period between Copernicus and Newton that transformed society's views of nature through mathematics, physics, and chemistry.

Andreas Vesalius

Researcher who contributed to human anatomy by dissecting corpses and drawing detailed illustrations of the human body.

Giordano Bruno

An Italian Monk burned at the stake for spreading Copernicus' beliefs about a heliocentric universe.

Antonie van Leeuwenhoek

The "Father of Microbiology" who discovered bacteria, which he called "animalcules."

William Harvey

Scientist who discovered how the heart works like a pump sending blood throughout the body with valves and heartbeats.

Robert Boyle

The "Father of Modern Chemistry" known for his experiments on gas pressures and volumes (Boyle's Gas Law).

Johannes Kepler

Developed the 3 Laws of Planetary Motion, proving that planets rotate in ellipses rather than perfect circles.

Nicolaus Copernicus

The first to prove the earth was not stationary and revolved around the sun, starting the Copernican Revolution.

Francis Bacon

An English politician who supported the empirical method and inductive reasoning based on concrete observations.

Ren é Descartes

Mathematician and philosopher who promoted deductive reasoning and famously said, "I think, therefore I am."

Isaac Newton

Discovered calculus and the 3 Laws of Motion, including the formula $Force = mass \times acceleration$.

The Enlightenment

Also known as the Age of Reason, an intellectual movement asserting that natural law could explain society and human nature.

Industrial Revolution

A period (1760-1800s) where manufacturing shifted from human/animal labor to machines like the steam engine and the factory system.

Information Age

The digital age beginning around the 1970s, characterized by a transition to a computerized economy and easy access to knowledge.